I made this straightedge guide so that I don't have to worry about the cut. The edge of the router rides against the guide edge, and this edge shows me exactly where the cut is going to be. That's because I made it oversize first and ran the router down the length of it. So that gives me exactly the cut that the router is going to make.

I can just put the edge right against here and take off, BUT, there is one other thing I have to worry about. If my router rocks any during the process, I'm not going to have a straight line to lay muy veneer in.

I'll actually have a mess.

So, I'm going to take a piece of material that is the same thickness that my jig is made out of, and I'm going to lay it down here to give both sides of my router base to rest on. Now, as long as I get the edge of my router against the fence, I should get a perfect cut.

—A recovering production trim carpenter, Gary Streigler is a partner in Craftsman Builders in Northwest Arkansas.